Birmingham City coffers have pocketed £450,000 thanks to TV money this season.

Gianfranco Zola’s side have featured nine times on the box this season and fans are still hopeful that the Second City derby with Aston Villa in just over two weeks' time will be chosen by the Football League’s broadcasting partner Sky Sports for live coverage.

The money on offer for EFL clubs for being on the big screen increased for Championship clubs this season, although it is still a way behind the Premier League deal which now earns millions from overseas sponsorship.

How is the money added up?

Jonathan Grounds celebrates

Championship clubs are awarded £100,000 for every home game broadcast on Sky, while they are given a £10,000 bonus for away clashes on the box.

Blues have hosted four Sky live matches this season, while they have been involved in a further five Championship TV fixtures away from St Andrew's.

While Blues have already pocketed £450,000, that figure could be increased depending on selections between now and the end of the campaign.

Blues' match with Villa now appears unlikely to be on the telly but Sky Sports told the Birmingham Mail a couple of weeks ago that there was still to be a match selected for coverage that weekend.

Other windfalls

Gianfranco Zola

TV money is only a small chunk of the cash Blues will receive this season. Unlike the Premier League, the EFL do not hand out prize money based on positions.

This means Blues are entitled to the same amount of money as the teams battling it out at the top of the Championship table.

Every club receives the same ‘basic award’ of £2.084 million.

This reflects the EFL giving an equal share of the TV deal negotiated with Sky to broadcast Championship games to every club in the division, regardless of where they finish.

The EFL also give every club in the Championship a £4.3million ‘solidarity payment’. The money is donated by the Premier League to ensure the gap from the second tier to top flight does not expand any further.